Budget 2019: India To Become $3 Trillion Economy This Year, Says Nirmala Sitharaman

The government on Friday unveiled Budget 2019, the first since the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi returned for a second term. Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, while presenting the Union Budget for 2019-20 in Parliament, said India will become a $3 trillion economy in the current year itself. "It is now the sixth largest economy... Five years ago it was 11th," the finance minister said. "We need to invest heavily in infrastructure, digital economy, job creation," Ms Sitharaman said.

Ms Sitharaman said India needs to make structural reforms to achieve the target of $5 trillion economy in the next few years. She said it was the right time to consider increasing minimum public shareholding from 25 per cent to 35 per cent.    

PM Modi has set a target of growing India into a $5 trillion economy by 2024/2025 from $2.7 trillion. On Thursday, the Economic Survey said that the target will be achieved on the back of higher investment, savings and exports in the way China's growth was propelled.

Indian economy grew at a much slower-than-expected 5.8 per cent in the last quarter, the weakest growth in five years.